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NPS Centennial

The National Park Service turned 100 on August 25, 2016, and we're celebrating all year long! Throughout 2016, we invite you to participate in Find Your Park Experiences to learn, discover, be inspired, or simply have fun in national parks. Find Your Park Experiences offer unique opportunities to explore national parks both in person and online. Check out the experiences in this park or search all experiences to identify an opportunity that matches your interests. You can also share your national park story at FindYourPark.com.

A Call to Action remains the foundation for our 2016 centennial efforts. It is the National Park Service's blueprint for the future, outlining the innovative work we want to accomplish. Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a big part of this effort. Take a look at what we're doing and get involved!

Experiences

Do some citizen science by helping collect data on the seasonal timing of plants and animals in the Appalachian Mountains. Attend a training workshop, download an app, gather your family and friends, and pull out your smart phone to collect original data on leaf formation, flower production, frog calling, or bird behavior. Your observations will help the NPS and its partners understand how these species are responding to climate change along the 2,200 mile Appalachian Trail. Read more

The World of World Heritage awaits. Get out and explore the 22 World Heritage Sites in the United States and see what makes these protected areas unique. Find out why the World has recognized them as being the most significant cultural and natural sites on the planet. Read more

Call to Action Projects

Great Smoky Mountains National Park has adopted the 5th Grade class at Pi Beta Phi Elementary School in Gatlinburg, TN to participate in a series of experiences culminating in the National Park Service Centennial in 2016 which coincides with their 8th grade graduation. Read more

Great Smoky Mountains National Park, with funding assistance from the Youth Partnership Program, hired eighteen high school students from its eight surrounding counties to participate in a summer intern program. Read more

During the summer of 2012, a group of five students embarked on their first expedition into Great Smoky Mountains National Park’s wilderness as a part of the Experience Your Smokies Youth Leadership Class. The four-year course is being offered through the Park’s partner, Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont, and will introduce its young participants to the cultural and biological diversity of the park though classroom programs as well as active outdoor learning opportun Read more

Great Smoky Mountains National Park initiated their first Artist in Residence Program during 2012. With help from Friends of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park as well as the Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, the first three artists shared their unique park inspirations to over 1000 park visitors during the summer. Read more